Pan'Theon: Rise' of th'e Fal'Len - #1 Thread in MMO

Caliane

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What do you guys think of Designed Downtime?

From KS Game tenets:



This is a critical point to me, Brad it might be great to add/clarify how are you planning to implement this. I loved grouping and getting to know people in EQ and we all know it was because of hp/mana regen , planning battles, pulling and so. Also bards played a big role during downtimes, twisting mana songs, hp regens...

On the other hand I really didnt like how WoW implemented it, waiting for the mages/healers to get mana between pulls, early in Vanilla while the other classes were already set. The concept is the same, mana regen, but the feeling was different to me between EQ and Wow.
I think its a very nice buzzword.
That could mean a whole lot of things in game.

I do miss on some level a more relaxed dungeon crawl/grind. Modern dungeons are about killing trash as fast as possible, and rushing to boss most efficiently.

The camp in a dungeon pathing safe spot. Chatting, while the puller goes and grabs a pack. Maybe even having a player vendor if the game supports that. (this is back to the player marketplace. and one of the reasons I always really like that.)
Consumable campfires? give aoe buffs/regen/etc. these spontaneous gathering spots providing natural player grouping.
This also works right into the "knowing the dungeon" idea. again, you need to know where these safe spots are. and how to get to them.

Player resting has all but vanished. and I can't say I know the right answer entirely. There is something to be said about the constant resting/drinking being a giant pain in the ass in old games.
Perhaps the answer needs to be a transition. Early game. no down time. but have downtime increase as you level, helping encourage that grouping for tougher areas.
 

Treesong

Bronze Knight of the Realm
362
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Yeah, it was. It meant there was actual consiquences for doing stuff. It brought the world alive. I hope Pantheon puts that kind of attention to detail into their NPCs as well.
Yes, the problem is that just putting NPC's on a faction is not nearly enough. There are uninteresting factiongrinds in other games, but they add zero to the world-feel, it is just another type of "token" to grind. The world has to be built to support an interesting faction system, with lots of races, starting cities, and factions being connected in an interesting manner where Races, Classes and the political landscape makes sense.

Faction in EQ after Luclin became very simple: before that, when killing an NPC, several factions went down, up to 6. This implicated many affiliations which was interesting. After Luclin this changed to mostly dichotomous factions, where a kill would increase your faction with one group and lower it with the opposite group. Not only that, but a dichotomous faction like that was often even limited to a single zone. That sort of simple "flip" factions, just to choose a side so you open up the corresponding quests is boring imo.

Because it requires so much extra attention to other features and content, I just do not see them doing this again. That still makes me wonder who did it the first time in EQ. I think it was Bill Trost.
 

malidar_sl

shitlord
1
0
Threw down the 45, a the very least thats like saying, give me alpha and I will buy your game before it comes out no matter how much it sucks.


We shall see.
 

Tuco

I got Tuco'd!
<Gold Donor>
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Regarding the con system I still remember the first NPC I conned in eq. I thought it was a Player and they were talking shit to me. What do you want your tombstone to say motherfucker?


For mounts fuck em. Put them in a later expansion.
 
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Yes, the problem is that just putting NPC's on a faction is not nearly enough. There are uninteresting factiongrinds in other games, but they add zero to the world-feel, it is just another type of "token" to grind. The world has to be built to support an interesting faction system, with lots of races, starting cities, and factions being connected in an interesting manner where Races, Classes and the political landscape makes sense.

Faction in EQ after Luclin became very simple: before that, when killing an NPC, several factions went down, up to 6. This implicated many affiliations which was interesting. After Luclin this changed to mostly dichotomous factions, where a kill would increase your faction with one group and lower it with the opposite group. Not only that, but a dichotomous faction like that was often even limited to a single zone. That sort of simple "flip" factions, just to choose a side so you open up the corresponding quests is boring imo.

Because it requires so much extra attention to other features and content, I just do not see them doing this again. That still makes me wonder who did it the first time in EQ. I think it was Bill Trost.
I agree that after Luclin, factions became kind of a joke. But prior to that, you mess up your faction with the elves, it's going to be a pain to bank and train on Feydwer. You mess up your faction with FV or OT (depending which race you were) it was going to be hard to get along on Kunark. And, of course, Velious was all about faction. There were real consiquences back then.
 

Treesong

Bronze Knight of the Realm
362
29
Why does the game require more than 8 races in order to have a faction system? Does not compute.
Well, I agree that you could make an interesting factional landscape with just 8 races, I was just thinking the more races, the more interesting affiliations and animosity you could create. But yeah, as long as there are enough factional groups in the gameworld(Class factions, local factions) you can make it work. I do think that enough starting cities that are spread out over the world make for a more interesting political landscape and gives you more opportunities for local flavour, like Orcs vs Woodelves, Halflings vs Goblins, Qeynos vs Gnolls. And then having interconnections between these local groups all over the world made it even better, like finding the odd Dark Elf in the Qeynos newbiegrounds.

So a large world, distance between races, local flavor and enemies, many starting cities that give players a sense of origin and belonging, lots of factional groups (also Class based, like the Rogue factions) and preferably a lot of races to mix it up. This is a lot of work, and I am afraid that development resources will be funneled elsewhere.
 

Mahes

Ahn'Qiraj Raider
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Having had time to think about this, I am going to pass. I loved EQ and it will always hold a place in my gaming heart, but giving money in the hopes that the magic will be relived 3 years from now seems to far away. Yes it is only $45.00, but it is still $45.00. While I am not hurting for money, I still respect it enough not to just throw it out of my window in the hopes that it will be caught by the wind and later come back to me as the EQ I once loved and remembered. I have no problem with giving to Kick Starter, as I have given to games like "Hex, Shards of Fate". I just have a problem donating to a game that is a concept that is not even fully realized yet. At any point the rules could change and suddenly it would not be the game I thought it was going to be. While some ideas have been clarified, many are still in the shadows. I cannot tell people what to do with their money but I can control mine.
 

Louis

Trakanon Raider
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Pledging $250 today. EQ was my favorite game of all time and I can only hope to experience a similar world again. Definitely a gamble worth taking in my mind.
 

Korrupt

Blackwing Lair Raider
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People gobbled up the 300 name your own item tier, gonna be some funny shit that comes out of those.
 

mkopec

<Gold Donor>
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I really dont think that this will be EQ at all. I think you guys have this all wrong if you think that this game will teleport you back to 1999 and your wonder years when you firs opened up a fresh EQ box.

But what I do think is that it will be different enough from the shitty WoW and clone formula that we are stuck in for the past 10 yrs. And this, my friends, is enough to warrant at least $45.
 
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Having had time to think about this, I am going to pass. I loved EQ and it will always hold a place in my gaming heart, but giving money in the hopes that the magic will be relived 3 years from now seems to far away. Yes it is only $45.00, but it is still $45.00. While I am not hurting for money, I still respect it enough not to just throw it out of my window in the hopes that it will be caught by the wind and later come back to me as the EQ I once loved and remembered. I have no problem with giving to Kick Starter, as I have given to games like "Hex, Shards of Fate". I just have a problem donating to a game that is a concept that is not even fully realized yet. At any point the rules could change and suddenly it would not be the game I thought it was going to be. While some ideas have been clarified, many are still in the shadows. I cannot tell people what to do with their money but I can control mine.
I understand that 3 years seems like a long way away, but since they are using Unity, Alpha is probably only a year away, maybe less. So people who pledge $45 won't havethatlong to wait before play begins.
 

Jimbolini

Semi-pro Monopoly player
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Take my money
 

mhoward48_sl

shitlord
7
0
i like mounts as a reward for a long quest line. the first few times going from point a to b might be full of danger and excitement, but after the novelty wears off, its really annoying spending half your play time traveling.
I agree, I just do not want to take away from the abilities of some of the classes. I played a Paladin, and had a horse, but I still preferred getting a SOW, or running alongside a Bard, any-day! The cost of a donation was well worth it for me.